Mersin is a large city and a port on the Mediterranean coast of southern Turkey. It is part of an interurban agglomeration, the Adana-Mersin Metropolitan Area, and lies on the western part of Çukurova, a geographical, economic and cultural region.

Mersin is an important hub of Turkey’s economy, and Turkey’s largest seaport is located in the city. Mersin’s nickname in Turkey is “Pearl of the Mediterranean” (Turkish: Akdeniz’in İncisi), and the city hosted the 2013 Mediterranean Games. Mersin is the provincial capital of the eponymous Mersin Province of Turkey. The Mersin province would have 1,056,331 inhabitants in 2007. The city or district would have 537,842 in 2000, and the city 623,861 in 2007

Today, Mersin is a large city spreading out along the coast, with skyscrapers, huge hotels, an opera house, expensive real estate near the sea or up in the hills, and many other modern urban amenities. The seaside of Mersin is the longest seaside in Turkey as well as in Eastern Mediterranean.

The Metropolitan Municipality is now trying to rescue the sea front with walkways, parks and statues, and there are still palm trees on the roadsides especially where the young generation like to hang out in the cafés and patisseries of smart neighbourhoods such as Pozcu or Çamlıbel.[which?] These are established neighbourhoods where there are many well-known shops and restaurants with years of experience and reputations to protect. The city centre is a maze of narrow streets and arcades of little shops and cafes, with young people buzzing around on scooters. The old quarter near the fish market is where you will find the stalls selling tantuni and grilled liver sandwiches.

One of the most distinctive features of the city as a whole is the solar heating panels, they are everywhere, on top of every building.

The Port of Mersin is the mainstay of city’s economy. The port is an international hub for many vessels routing to European countries, and is currently[when?] being operated by PSA International. There are 45 piers, a total port area of 785,000 square metres (194 acres), with a capacity of 6,000 ships per year.

Adjacent to the port is Mersin Free Zone established in 1986, the first free zone in Turkey, with warehouses, shops, assembly-disassembly, maintenance and engineering workshops, banking and insurance, packing-repacking, labelling and exhibition facilities. The zone is a publicly owned center for foreign investors, close to major markets in the (Middle East, North Africa, East and West Europe, Russian Federation and Central Asia. The trading volume of the free zone was USD 51.8 billion in 2002.Mersin has highway connections to the north, east and west. Mersin is also connected to the southern railroad. Adana Airport is the main airport serving the city and located 69 kilometres (43 mi) outside of Mersin’s city centre.